“The Miseducation of Cameron Post” – Tribeca Film Festival Review

After Cameron is caught having sex with another girl on prom night, her conservative guardians send her to gay conversion therapy. There, she forges an unlikely community with her fellow teens in this Sundance-winning coming of age story.

One of the disappointing factors about “The Miseducation of Cameron Post” is that while there’s a decent amount of backstory to help make Cameron an investing character, there isn’t quite enough. Chloe Grace Moretz plays the title character and despite putting in arguably the best performance of her career, it feels like there could have been more depth to help bring a more emotional touch.

Cameron still gets off much better than any of the other characters at the conversion center. There’s a wide group of people that are introduced and yet the community feels like it lacks personality. Nearly every person blends together with only one or two standouts. It would have been more compelling to see Cameron struggle to connect with those who are seemingly different on the surface but might have more depth that they’re trying to hide.

The pacing is a bit uneven with some scenes moving along smoothly thanks to some clever editing and others that drag immensely and feel meandering. This leads to a third act that feels incredibly underwhelming because there wasn’t a particularly satisfying emotional journey to go on.

It’s underwhelming that “The Miseducation of Cameron Post” was restricted to a 90 minute runtime as the story and characters feel half fleshed out. It’s a mixed bag of a handful of moments that deliver a personal touch and others that feel completely rushed. The novel that this film is based on is 470 pages long and even without having read it, it’s abundantly clear that a lot is missing that potentially could have made for a more special and affecting drama.

2.5/5

Stay tuned this Friday or Saturday as I am attending the 31-hour long Marvel Movie Marathon beginning on Wednesday, showcasing eleven films from the Marvel Cinematic Universe leading into the Thursday night premiere of “Avengers: Infinity War.” I will be writing a post here on my experience attempting to make it through all of the films without sleeping. Fingers crossed I make it!

For more reviews on the films playing at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, stay tuned to the site for the next few days. Also follow me on my Letterboxd to stay updated with all my reviews of films as soon as I see them.